June 24 (THEWILL) — A High Court sitting in Sokoto State has sentenced a Nigerien national and two Nigerians to death by hanging after convicting them on charges of terrorism and arms trafficking, following a prosecution by the Department of State Services (DSS).
The convicts, identified as Yusuf Muhammad, also known as Sallau, a Nigerien national, Jabbi Alhaji Yalle and Kabiru Muhammad, were found guilty by Justice Muhammad Nuraddeen Bello of High Court No. 23, Sokoto, in Suit No. SS/45C/2026.
Delivering judgement, Justice Bello held that the prosecution had proved its case beyond reasonable doubt and consequently convicted the three defendants on charges bordering on terrorism and the proliferation of illegal arms.
The court sentenced the convicts to death by hanging and further ordered the forfeiture of all monetary exhibits recovered from them to the Federal Government.
The three men were arrested on June 13, 2025, by operatives of the DSS Counter-Terrorism Unit during an operation targeting cross-border criminal networks involved in arms trafficking and terrorism-related activities.
According to security sources, investigations linked the suspects to transnational criminal operations engaged in the movement of weapons and other activities considered a threat to national security.
The prosecution told the court that the defendants were involved in cross-border criminal activities bordering on terrorism and arms trafficking, offences that have contributed to insecurity in parts of the country and the wider Sahel region.
Justice Bello, in his ruling, agreed with the prosecution’s submissions and found all three defendants guilty as charged.
The court also directed that funds and other monetary exhibits recovered during investigations be forfeited to the Federal Government.
The conviction marks another significant milestone in the ongoing efforts of security agencies to dismantle terrorist networks, disrupt illegal arms supply chains and prosecute individuals involved in activities that threaten Nigeria’s national security.
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